Maryland Bridge

The Maryland Bridge is an increasingly popular kind of bridge as very little preparation of the adjacent teeth is required.

Maryland bridges are made up of a special ceramic material, which is cemented on to the enamel of the adjacent teeth. One of the benefits of the Maryland bridge is the minimal preparation and that there's no need to expose the inner part of the tooth known as the dentin.

This helps to minimise the risk of you experiencing sensitivity in your teeth following the procedure. Also, as the nearby teeth won't need to be altered greatly, the process is normally completely reversible.

It is often performed without the need for local anaesthetic.  

A small amount of preparation is usually made to your natural teeth in order to accommodate the bridge. An impression is taken of the mouth and this is then sent off to a laboratory in Perth, where they specialise in  custom bridge manufacture. It is often necessary for the patient the visit the dental technician in order to match the colour of the ceramic crown to the adjacent teeth.

The placement of the Maryland Bridge is also very straightforward and involves the use of specialised dental adhesives to secure it into place.

This procedure is very useful for young patients who are missing teeth in the front of their mouths.

The bridge can be placed immediately following orthodontic treatment. There is no need to wait until growth completion as with treatment involving dental implants. Therefore, avoiding the patient requiring a denture for an extended period of time.

This form of treatment is reversible and the bridges can be removed at a later date once the patient has reached growth completion and wishes to have dental implants placed.   

In our experience, this is seldom required as the appearance of these bridges is excellent and removal is often deemed unnecessary.

 

 

The advantage of the Maryland Bridge is that it doesn’t involve the grinding down of adjacent healthy teeth. It is also:

• Minimally invasive
• Proven effective with more than 20 years of clinical success
• Less costly than implants
• Better functioning and better looking than removable dentures